Her Secret Spot
by JaymeethePanda
Summary: But maybe now it was hers too.


It was her secret spot. A place to go when she had nowhere else. A place to think without distraction. A place that miraculously calmed her down when her anger had passed the boiling point or tears were on the brink of cascading down her angelic face.

It was her secret spot. And, somehow, he'd found it.

He didn't mean to, really. Firstly, it wasn't his fault her spot wasn't so secret. It was easily accessible for anyone with the capability to climb. Her so-called "spot" was just a roof of one of the many tall buildings in Gotham. He couldn't see what was so special about it. But, then again, everything in her eyes was special.

Secondly, even if he knew she had a spot he wouldn't have purposefully gone looking for it. He knew, better than most people, the strong need for privacy when something was unsettling him. He wasn't afraid of emotions, contrary to popular belief, but he definitely understood the fear of looking weak in front of others.

It was the same as any other fear, yet completely different at the same time. How could one be afraid of something so trivial? Easy: be taught that showing any sign of weakness was a weakness within itself. Be taught that being anything besides strong was punishable by death. At least, that was how the fear was carved into his soul. As for her, he didn't know.

What he did know was that fear was how they were the same. Sure she was kind, caring, and selfless while he was rude, inconsiderate, and selfish. But they were both intelligent, enigmatic, and closed off. He was yin and she was yang.

Anyway, his whole purpose for being out was because of patrol. Albeit boring, it was a regular night. They begin at 10 and scour the city for the unusual. Then Damian's shift would end at 3 so he could get a few hours of sleep before school, not that he ever did, though. Then an hour later his counterpart would come home only to make his way to the Bat computers for less physical work. Nothing exciting, not to his expectations at least, happened besides busting a few thugs attempting to rob a convenience store.

He knew Batman and Robin were supposed to be the "Dynamic Duo" and he knew they were supposed to help anyone in need no matter the case, but he wished his father would let him off on his own for more intriguing matters. It was a convenience store for God's sake! An incident a measly cop could have easily handled.

Did he not trust him? What was he thinking, of course, he didn't. No one did. That's why he was out by himself. He looked at the clock tower, _3: 23,_ he read. He was sent home earlier, but, and he was sure the Dark Knight himself knew this, he always stayed out for an hour or two more.

And that's when he stumbled upon her and her "secret spot". Skimming the tops of buildings and slicing through the air with his grappling hook in hand, he was simply scanning the streets for any more interesting suspicious activity. Joker had been uncharacteristically quiet, as of late.

He was just about to jump off the side and swing to the next building when he noticed her silhouette outlined by the huge moon. She was sitting on the ledge, legs dangling and swinging back and forth over the edge. Her hands rested on either side of her, lessening the strain on her back to keep her upright.

She was in costume; black spandex similar to his brother's and matching wedges with hidden compartments. Black fingerless gloves adorned her hands, allowing easy grip for her twin katanas in an X across her back. The bodysuit zipped in the front, where the Batman insignia rested on her chest and her zipper stopped just above it. Her entire body was covered, head-to-toe, in the black, waterproof material. Except her head, where she allowed her long, thick blonde hair to flow in waves down her back. A simple black mask in the shape of a bat covered her eyes, devoid of the white other masks had. Her alias: Batgirl.

There hadn't been anyone to take up the mantle after the unfortunate event that happened to the Gordon girl, as Damian had once been told of. Cain would have been a suitable subject, but she adopted her own persona as Batwoman. So original.

Anyway, it was he who had first met her. At the academy, actually. She wasn't really well-known at school, she did a good job at blending in with the crowd. A real good job, until he accidently bumped into her in the hallway and she became the first person to ever tell him off. He was just as intimidating as Damian, as he was when he was Robin.

He was his sarcastic, rude, blunt, and overwhelmingly conceited self at school just like with his family, only quieter. No student dared to approach to him, for fear of being criticized or judged. But it didn't matter, the teachers liked him and he didn't really care much either way. He finished his work within minutes of class starting and read the rest of the hour. During lunch, he would usually sneak outside to sit under a willow tree he had grown quite fond of. And during gym, he had personally asked the teacher to allow him to work out on his own whether it was running laps, lifting weights, or doing various exercises for credit.

Even if she was a master at blending in, he had actually noticed her before. She was in a few of his classes, and he will admit she didn't completely annoy him like everyone else. She did her work just like him, though not as fast, and had similar interest for books, only she wrote more than she read. But her most promising trait was her exquisite skills in gymnastics.

He noted her absence in gym class some days when he noticed her by chance training with her then-teacher on the rings. She was strong, she held herself with such grace and her moves were extremely fluid. She swung and flipped swiftly through the air like she had it already perfected.

Not only that, he could also see the intense focus and determination in her face. He could see how dedicated she was to her practice and how serious fixing every mistake was to her. She worked hard, harder than anyone he knew, and it paid off.

They hadn't ever spoke again after that first encounter. They continued on with their lives like nothing had happened. The next time, however, was with Robin. Her family was rich, hence, why she attended Gotham Academy, and they had been invited to the annual winter gala hosted by the mayor himself. And yes, Bruce and the rest of the bat family attended as themselves.

There were many families, many people chatting amongst themselves that he hadn't even seen her there, let alone paid enough attention to figure out she would be coming. Just when things seemed light and the mood happy, as one could easily guess, Joker decided to crash the party.

He burst into the room with his slick talk and overly-perky girlfriend (more like victim) Harley. His men, each equipped with their own gun, began shooting up the place like nobody's business. Immediately taking action, Damian and the rest changed right then and there and began taking out each thug.

After realizing his arch-nemesis was there, he and Harley each decided to take a hostage of their own. Those two were, dismally, her parents. She stood there, makeup streaming down her face and eyes filled with fear. The two murderers stood there, each carrying the damn nerve to smile, and pulled their triggers.

She spent a few days in a home, her parents being her only family in Gotham before Bruce had taken pity upon her and took her in. He didn't really adopt her as he had with Grayson, more like permanently fostered like Todd.

She wasn't entirely happy with the idea of living in a house of all boys; a kid her age who she met on bad terms, another a few years older who she never really talked to, a "father", per say, who was never home, and an elderly butler who somehow managed to not die of stress. For the first few weeks, she only spoke when spoken to, often so lost in thought it took a few tries before she fully paid attention, and hardly left the house.

The one thing, however, that sparked Bruce's attention was the fact she spent a large amount of time training in the backyard. She may not have had the bars, beams, or rings, but she had solid ground and that was all she needed. She managed to wake up every morning at 5 and train for an hour, before getting ready for school or starting her day during the weekends.

It wasn't easy to miss. Not to her. She noticed, clearly, the disappearance of Damian, Tim, and Bruce at night. She noticed some days when bruises or cuts mysteriously appeared on them overnight. She noticed how incredibly intellectually smart they all three were. But she kept her mouth shut, if they didn't want to tell her what was going on then she would respect that. But that didn't mean she couldn't figure it out for herself.

Days and days of research and she had finally deduced that Tim Drake was Red Robin, Damian Wayne was Robin, and Bruce Wayne was the famous Batman. It should have surprised her, it would anyone else. Not to say she wasn't, but putting it all together, the puzzle completed, it was hard to unsee the uncanny resemblance between them and their other selves.

She still wasn't going to say anything, that is until she had accidently stumbled upon, in her eyes, the most marvelous and spectacular place she had ever had the pleasure of stepping foot in. The Batcave. She didn't mean to push the brick on the hearth around the fireplace. Okay, maybe she did. She had simply dropped something and nonchalantly put her hand there for support to pick it up. Then rumbling was heard and there she saw the bricks move left and right and the fireplace itself move under the floor. In the metal pole, she saw her reflection split in half. One side told her it wasn't right to snoop in someone else's home. The other told her it was her home too and asked when she would get another chance to explore.

So she took the latter.

Looking around at all the gadgets and computers, she was in awe. On one side was the high-tech training room with many kinds of weapons and forms of training. On the other was a row of glass casings where various versions of Batman were stored, as well as Robins and Batgirl. In the middle of it, rested the huge computer networking system used to track down anyone and anything within minutes.

That was when he found her while she stood there with a pounding heart and muttering multiple sorry's and weakly explaining what had happened. That was also when he decided she had enough potential to become another protége of his while she, demeanor changed, stood there with a still pounding heart and mouth opening and closing while voicing nothing.

For a year she trained hard and well with the three of them, also receiving personal tips on emergency care from Alfred. Although the brooding man was a great mentor, his abrupt and brute style wasn't to her liking. She was strong, but she wasn't strong enough to punch a guy square in the face and knock him out in one go. So, being the greatest detective in the world, he called someone who he knew would be able to teach her more to her gymnast style.

After that year, Bruce felt she was trained enough to become part of the team. She had the choice of adopting her own persona or, if she wanted, she could take up the mantle Batgirl. Batgirl it was, but she was dead set on tweaking the costume. No way in hell was she gonna fight with an extra piece of fabric hanging off her back that was just waiting to turn her fights into disaster.

During her training, she had become closer to the two boys she lived with. Tim felt like an older brother and he was so well-mannered, man did she read him wrong. Damian, on the other hand, was something more. At first, she couldn't stand the little shit. But, after studying and analyzing him like she did with just about everyone, she realized he was just like her. A caring, scared, and lonely person on the inside. Someone who was beaten and bruised emotionally growing up. Her parents weren't exactly always there for her, as unbelievable as that was.

They learned to live with one another, even sharing their interests in the arts. He would read her stories and poems and she would listen to him read his favorite books aloud to her. They were best friends, though she knew he would never be caught dead calling her that. She also impacted him greatly; she showed him that it was okay to show kindness every once in awhile.

Snapping back into reality, Damian blinked his eyes to be rid of the lingering memories. Hesitating just the slightest bit, he walked toward her quietly. But she still heard him, moving her head to the side just enough to acknowledge his presence. Her hair framed her face, hanging over eyes a bit like a protective curtain.

No emotion shown on her face, he couldn't tell whether she was happy or angry at his intrusion. Either way, no words were said as he sat beside her, back to the city and the instant drop to the cold, hard ground.

He caught her gaze, her dark blue eyes expertly hiding any hidden emotion. But he couldn't help but be captured too; those eyes, those mysterious blue eyes. What was behind them? What did they hide? Why were they so undeniably mesmerizing?

Suddenly, he saw the hint of sadness in them. She may have been an expert, but she couldn't keep everything in for long. And in that moment, staring back at his eyes covered by the white lenses of his mask, she faltered. He may not cover his outrageously spiked hair, but the eyes were the most common form of recognition.

She didn't know what it was about him. Maybe it was his tough exterior hiding and protecting his softer interior. Maybe it was his special understanding of her and what she felt. Or maybe it was just the fact that he was the first person to ever find her there and she needed someone to be there for her.

No matter what it was, that waiver was all he needed to understand why she was sitting there. He didn't know everything, but he didn't need to. After all, it was her spot, wasn't it?

The wind picked up, blowing her hair and causing her to shiver instinctively. Automatically, she laid her head on his shoulder while grabbing his cape and wrapping it around herself. He didn't stiffen, he didn't shove her away, he let her stay there. He even grabbed her hands in his gloved ones simply to warm them up.

Suddenly, he heard something to his side. He looked over to see her giggling softly, her eyes bright and happy again and her mouth turned up in amusement. What she was laughing at he didn't know, but it made him smile nonetheless.

He didn't like seeing her sad.

Seeing his smile caused her to do something she would never be able to forget. She kissed his cheek. It was warm, despite the cold air, and filled her heart with an unusual feeling.

They both went back to their original positions, silently agreeing to not acknowledge that happened. Looking up into the night sky, she smiled to herself. It was her secret spot, and now it was his too.


End file.
